Amphibious vehicle and endless propelling belts therefor



July 31, 1956 P. E. HURTHIG AMPHIBIOUS VEHICLE AND ENDLESS PROPELLINGBELTS T Filed Jan. 26, 1953 HEREFOR 2 Sheets-Sheet l 22 INVENTOR PETERE. HURT/W6 July 31, P. E HURTHIG AMPHIBIOUS VEHICLE AND ENDLESSPROPEILLING BELTS THEREFOR Filed Jan. 26, 1953 2 gheets-Sheet 2 [35 34)[30'\ (34 i k L l l L h 42 44 (28 L L 37: 544 52 II H II II IIIIIIUIIITm'III IIIHI-llllllllll INVENTOR FfTER F. HURTH/G I I BY I 5 I 10 I I A TORNEYE United States Patent AMPHIBIOUS VEHICLE AND ENDLESSPRO-. PELLING BELTS THEREFOR Peter Emfrid Hurthig, Vancouver, BritishColumbia, Canada, assignor of oneehalf to Ernest David Wesley Maxwell,Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada This invention relates toimprovements in amphibious vehicles which may be used for war or otherpurposes The vehicle is particularly designed to be used as a tank forwar purposes, but it is to-be' understood that it may be constructed fordifierent peaceful uses. The tanks that have been in use up to thepresent time have been very cumbersome, comparatively slow in movement,and greatly hampered in operation by snow, swamp land, and water.Furthermore, the known tanks may be stopped by comparatively lowobstacles.

It is the main object of the present invention to provide a vehicle ortank which will afford the occupants more protection than the priortanks, and which is capable of travelling at much higher speeds, ofmoving over much larger obstacles, and of freely operating in swamp,muskeg, snow and water. I

Afurther object is the provision of a tank which may be made completelywater-tight below the level at which it would float.

A further object is the provision of a tank having one or more endlesspropelling belts or treads which may be so constructed to act as armourfor the tank.

Yet another object is the provision of a tank con.- structed so as toafford complete protection for the propelling belts or treads thereoffrom the sides.

A further object is the provision of a tank having very few moving partsexposed to gun-fire.

\ This vehicle or tank comprises a housing having a peripheral wallaround a horizontal axis extending transversely thereof. This housingpreferably is cylindrical or substantially cylindrical in shape, and itincludes means for closing the sides or ends thereof. The closing meansmay be in the form of substantially semi-spherical blisters whichprotrude from the ends of the cylinder. One or morerendless propellingbelts are movably mounted on and extend around the housing in a planenormal to the axis thereof. A suitable power unit is provided in thehousing along with means for operatively connecting said unit to thebelt or belts to move them around the housing. Means is provided forstabilizing the housing during the movement of the propelling belt orbelts. This may be in the form of a relatively great Weight positionedat the bottom of the housing, said weight being made up partly or.wholly by equipment of the vehicle, or a gyroscope may be installed forthis purpose. One or more guns may project from the blisters, and one ormore normally closed hatches may be provided therein.

An example of this invention is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which,

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the vehicle,

Figure 2 is a side elevation thereof,

2,756,830 Patented 31, 1956 Figure 3 is a top plan,

Figure 4 is an enlarged diagrammaticv cross section taken on the line4-4 of Figure 3, and I Figure 5 s, n. h r s fi s ehta v tion ksh. 9 theline 55 of Figure 4.

Referring to the drawings, 10 is a housing of any desired construction.It t e his e v int ded a. he use as a tank, the housing would beconstructed of suitable heavy r r mat r a hi h u n as, a cur e P r he al 12, extendi r und 'hor oq t l axis. india by hrh e has .3 in F g T eho s n 1 preferably in cylindrical form which in vertical eross sectionmay be round or oval. In the illustrated example, the housing issubstantially circular in cross section. Sui a le m a s a e rh ded or osn th d f t e h ha h c ac u l form e sides h vehicle It is preferable toclose said ends by substantially semis he al. b ist sv .5 an wh h haleaha e fo me of when Pla s f th hic e s intended. o w r u os At ea nendle prop l e t '0 m v b wanted 9 an ext n awhh the hou g in a l ne hemetic e xi 3! there f. two 9f uch be e h shown he the llus te fa m at eihvsntiqhhe has ma he em et Ou sid f. th u n b t t s Pre enabl fit than;ath a shanh l'zz fo m d in a d exam; ing around a substantial portion ofthe peripheral wall 2- h chan e s if ch death at he 1 bf t e 9- he t a ebe ar s mpl t ly qq a h d therein t this point, and said channelgradually gets shallower from this point in the two opposite directionsto the bottom of the tank where it is very shallow or practically disapa a i dica d t .3 in F u 4- By xam ins F gur 2. it Will b en t t tpropelling e ts are shtnp st ly e ca e w th n the hou in hannel amendthe rea e a h reof. but a ex end te l a he bottom of the tank asindicated at "25 so that said belts rest o award nd suppor the hh s nsqve the latter.' U

B sh elt ma h at any esire construction, bu t s preferable in the formof treads somewhat similar to ordinar ank tr a s- H we er. eac e t. incud an endless flexible band 28 which extends around the housing Withinthe c nnel 22- itahle ean is P id for preventing lateral movement of theband. For this pur; pose. a P of tracks ma ext nd arca e he h u n andthe band provided with a plurality of rollers 30 on its inner surfaceriding onthese tracks. The outer surface of each track may be curved incross seetion, in which case the rollers are correspondingly curved tofit over it. The outer part of the propelling belt may be formed of aplurality of treads 34 which are pivqtally connected to each other bymeans of side links 35 see Figure 6. Each tread may be spaced outwardlyfrom the band 28 in any convenient manner. In this example,

the treads are provided with bolts 36 extending inwardly therefromfreely through the band and having" heads 3,7 at their inner ends.Compression springs on these bolts between the band and the treadsresiliently hold the latter outwardly from the former.

The propelling belts may be moved around the housing in any desiredmanner. ln this example, each band has an internal gear 42 extendingaround its inner surface which meshes with a gear 43 mounted in thehousing it! n Projecting h h a slo 44 t r. 4 ih ths ten the e or in' thebottom of the channel 22 at the top of said the case in a substantiallytear-drop housing. Suit able means is provided for rotating this gear. Apower unit 47, such as a gasoline or diesel engine,

is mounted on a floor 48 within the housing and is operatively connectedto the gear 43. This may be'done by means of a pinion 50 fixed to themotor shaft 51 and meshing with another gear 52 which, in turn, mesheswith a smaller gear 53 fixed to a short shaft 54 upon which the gear 43is fixedly mounted. One power unit 47 may be used for both propellingbelts, but as shown, a separate unit 47 is preferred for eachbelt.The'vehicle is steered or controlled by altering the speed of one beltrelative to the other. i p

If the housing is circular or practically circular'in cross section, thebands 28 and internal gears 42 may be formed without a break. However,if the contour of the housing includes a fairly sharp curve, which wouldbe necessary to form the bands and internal gears in sections hingedlyconnected to each other.

It is necessary to provide means for stabilizing the housing 10 whilethe propelling belts are moving therearound. This may be accomplished byproviding sufficient weight below the centre of gravity of the housingto keep it in an upright position. The weight may be partly orcompletely formed bymac'hinery and equipment in thehousing, or a specialdead weight may be provided for this purpose. It is, however, preferredto provide a gyroscope as diagrammatically illustrated at 58., The powerfor operating the gyroscope maybe supplied by one of the units 47, or aseparate power unit 59 may be provided.

Anysuitable armament may be provided for thetank. In this example,cannons blisters and 16. opening 64 in its blister and has a shield 65which moves 7 with it and keeps the opening closed at all times. Otherslots, not shown, may be provided through which smaller arms may betired. p Slots may be provided in one or bothblisters for the design, itwould be 62 project outwardly from the Each cannon projects through an,

driver of the vehicle, or a suitable periscope arrangementmaybe'provided for this purpose.

Access may be gainedto the housing 10 in any convenient manner. Forexample, a hatchway 67 may be provided in one of the shields 65, saidhatchway being normally closed by a sliding hatch 68. A suitable laddermay be provided on the outside of the blister, or one may be used whichmay be drawn into the housing after the occupants get into it.

This vehicle or tank is actually in the form of a large wheel havingpropelling belts or treads around the periphery thereof. As a result ofthis, it is possible to gain very high speeds with a reasonable amountof power. The vehicle will ride over any obstacles the tops of which arebelow the axis thereof. As this wheel is much larger than the wheelsaround which the treads of ordinary tanks travel, it will ride over muchhigher obstacles. The outer surfaces of the blisters and the treads areexposed to gun fire, but these surfaces are curved so that there is agreat possibility that most shells will be deflected. The treads of thepropelling belts are exposed to gunfire only from directly in front of,above or behind the vehicle, thus reducing greatly the possibility ofbeing hit. In addition to this, the moving treads will deflect a largepercentage of the shells hitting them. In fact, the treads providesubstantial armour for the vehicle housing, and they can be made veryheavy for this purpose. 7

In Figures 1 and 2, the broken line 72 indicates the level of water inwhich the tank or vehicle may float. The only openings into the housingare at the top thereof so that said housing may be made completelywater-tight. This is the big advantage when it is desired to land thetanks from vessels ofl shore, or for crossing rivers or marshy land. Thetreads of the operating belts provide surfaces for propelling thevehicle through snow, sand, muskeg, water and swamp land.

While two propelling belts have been shown in a single channel extendingaround the housing, it is obvious that eachbelt may be in a separatechannel of its own, said channels being spaced from each other in theperipheral wall of the housing.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. An amphibious vehicle comprising a ing a curved peripheral wallaround a horizontal axis extending transversely thereof, meanscompletely closing the sides of the housing, a channel formed in andextending around a substantial portion of the peripheral wall, saidchannel being practically the same width as the housing and openingoutwardly therefrom in a radial direction,

a pair of endless propelling belts movably mounted side by side in thechannel and extending around the housing,

said belts covering'the channel bottom, a power unit in the housing, andmeans operatively connecting the power unit to the belts to move thelatter around thehousing.

2. An amphibious'vehicle comprising a housing having a curved peripheralWall. around a horizontal axis power unit to the belts to move thelatter around the housing.

3. An amphibious vehicle comprising a housing hav ing a curvedperipheral wall around a horizontalaxis extending transversely thereof,semi-spherical blisters completely closing the opposite sides of thehousing, a pair of endless propelling belts movably mounted on andextending around the housing in aplane normal to the axis thereof; eachbelt consisting of anendless flexible band, a plurality of treadspivotally connected to each other ext'ending'completely around the band,means resiliently connecting the treads to and spacing them out-. wardlyfrom the band, and means preventing lateral movement of the band; apower unit in the housing, and means operatively connecting the powerunit to the belts to move the latter around the housing.

4. An amphibious vehicle comprising a completely closed housing having acurved peripheral wall around a horizontal axis extending transverselythereof, a channel formed in and extending around a substantial portionof the peripheral wall, said channel being practically the same width asthe housing and. opening outwardly therefrom in a radial direction, apair of endless propelling belts movably mounted side by side in thechannel and extending around the housing, said belts covering thechannel bottom, said channel beingjdeep enough at the top of the housingto accommodate the entire belts and. gradually getting shallower fromthis point in the two opposite directions to the bottom thereof, saidbelts projecting outwardly beyond the peripheral wall of the housing atthe bottom thereof to provide traction means therefor, a power unit inthe housing, and means operatively connecting the power unit to thebelts at the top of the housing to move said belts therearound.

5. An amphibious vehicle comprising .a completely closed housing havinga curved peripheral wall around a horizontal axis extending transverselythereof, a channel formed in and extending around a substantial portionof the peripheral wall, said channel being practically the same width asthe housingand opening outwardly therefrom in a radial direction, a pairof endless propelling belts movably mounted on and extending around thehousing in a plane normal to the axis thereof; each belt consisting ofan endless flexible band, a'plurality of treads pivotally connected toeach other extending completely around the band,,means resilientlyconnecting the treads t0 and spacing them outwardly from the band, andmeans housing hav-.

preventing lateral movement of the band; said channel being deep enoughat the top of the housing to accommodate the entire belts and graduallygetting shallower from this point in the two opposite directions to thebottom thereof, said belts projecting outwardly beyond the peripheralwall of the housing at the bottom thereof to provide traction meanstherefor, a power unit in the housing, and means operatively connectingthe power unit to the belts at the top of the housing to move said beltstherearound.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS StockJuly 2, Beard Aug. 4, Lauterbur Aug. 12, Knepper Nov. 2, Pomilio Apr.12, Von Kories Mar. 2, Jenewein et al. May 25, Wheeler Jan. 28,

